Restaurant suggestions for Chicago --- downtown -- medium prices; ethnic or not; we like it all!
Thanks

Francesca's for the price is unbeatable. Scott Harris started out with one restaurant and in no time at all has like 10 and they are all packed. In the city of Chicago, there is Mia Francesca's on Clark and Francesca's on Taylor. Website: http://www.miafrancesca.com/
Another good restaurant moderately priced if you like Mexican food, is Frontera Grill also on Clark St.

Excellent choices! However, there is not a Francesca's downtown. Neither Mia Francesca nor Frontera Grill take reservations. Usually, people are lining up at 4:45 to get into Frontera which opens at 5:00. The Francesca's on Taylor does take reservations and the food is just as good. Francesca's is probably one of my favorite restaurants but there are other good Italian restaurants on Taylor. Another good one is Tuscany. If you like Cajun food, Heaven on Seven is very good. There is one on Wabash and one on Rush Street a little further north.

Pizano's pizza on N. State.

Thyme on Halsted.

Coco Pazzo off Michigan Ave.

When we visited Chicago, we had great dinners at the following downtown restaurants: Gibson's Steakhouse (one of the best steaks I've ever had), MK, Wildfire, Brasserie Joe's, Bin 36, Frontera Grill.

We ate late (9:30) at Frontera on weeknite, and had no trouble at that time getting a table, however I hear the wait for a table at earlier times and on weekends can be very long. Another Mexican restaurant we heard was very good (but didn't get a chance to try) is the Adobo Grill right next to Second City ... this would be a great option for dinner if you're going to Second City.

The possibilities are almost endless. Try the dining section of www.metromix.com. You can plug in all kinds of search criteria...location, price, food type and out comes listings with user reviews and sometimes the Tribune's dining review.

ttt